Yokohama to License Tyre Inner Liner Technology to ExxonMobil

The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., announced that it reached an agreement to license ExxonMobil Chemical Company, a division of Exxon Mobil Corporation of the United States, technology in connection with the Yokohama Advanced Liner (YAL), a new patented inner liner for automotive tyres. In addition, Yokohama and ExxonMobil Chemical are combining their respective expertise in the field to improve and advance the performance of YAL. The agreement also grants ExxonMobil Chemical rights to commercialize and globally market YAL related materials in the future.

YAL is a new technology originally developed by Yokohama and further improved through a joint cooperative effort with ExxonMobil Chemical which offers the flexibility and elasticity of a rubber and low air permeability of a plastic. A tyre inner liner is a layer affixed to the inside of a tyre to prevent air leakage. With current technology an inner liner can weigh up to 10 per cent of the total weight of a tyre. Halogenated butyl rubber (halobutyl rubber) is the most frequent material of choice. If this halobutyl rubber is replaced with YAL, YAL’s superior impermeability enables the inner liner to be a thin film yielding a significant reduction in the total weight. Additional benefits important to today’s market such as reduced energy consumption and natural resource conservation may also be realized.